Chris Jordan Signs For Sussex

Chris Jordan Signs For Sussex

Chris Jordan never quite fulfilled the early promise that he showed for Surrey.

©Action Images / Michael Regan

Sussex have signed out of contract former Surrey all-rounder Chris Jordan on a two-year contract. Jordan will join former Surrey captain Rory Hamilton-Brown at Hove next season, with both men looking to fulfil their obvious potential and recover from what were, for different reasons, difficult 2012 seasons.

Jordan made his Surrey debut in 2007 and, despite being born in Barbados, was talked about early on as a future England all-rounder. Unfortunately, through a combination of injuries and poor performances, he didn’t progress as Surrey had hoped and played his last match for them in July of last year before being released at the end of the season. Overall in 2012, he averaged 16.38 with the bat - including four innings as a makeshift opener - and 40.87 with the ball.

Sussex director of cricket Mark Robinson was nevertheless delighted to have signed Jordan and was quick to point out the 24 year-old’s undoubted potential.

“Chris has got enormous potential. He can bowl genuinely quick and has the ability to be able to bat at 6 or 7, and is a natural athlete in the field,” he said.

“As yet, he hasn’t been able to find the consistency needed to fulfil his potential. He is still young and we hope we can help Chris fulfil this rich promise and become not only a match-winner at Sussex but also for England.”

Jordan himself added of his move to Hove: “As soon as Sussex expressed an interest in me it became clear it would be an exceptional place to continue my cricketing development. Meeting with Mark Robinson and Mark Davis and looking around the club further confirmed that the set up at Sussex is perfectly suited to helping me achieve my career goals and ambitions of becoming a top class all-round cricketer. 

“I hope to play a key role in helping Sussex challenge for honours in all three formats in 2013, and I look forward to joining the boys for pre-season and pushing for a place in the starting XI for the first game of the season.”

County Cricket News In Brief:
Luke Evans, another former Surrey cricketer, has extended his contract with his current club Warwickshire until the end of the 2014 season. Despite not securing a regular first-team place since his move to Edgbaston, Evans did help the Bears win the 2011 Second XI Championship.

Leicestershire batsman Matthew Boyce has completed his gruelling 66-day charity walk from John O’Groats to Land’s End. The 27 year-old embarked on the walk in order to raise awareness of depression in sport and to raise money for mental health charity MIND and the PCA Benevolent Fund.

Speaking to the ECB website, Boyce said that he had had a few problems early on with his Achilles, back and feet, but once he had conquered those then it became easier and easier as time went on.

Somerset have announced a record profit of £409,000 for the year up to September 2012. This is a marginal increase on the 2011 figure and comes because of a second place finish in the LV= County Championship, a home Friends Life t20 quarter-final and a strong showing in the 2011 Champions League T20.

© Cricket World 2012